The Wyndham hotel chain is planning to open eight new properties in Mexico next year including one under its most luxurious brand.

Alejandro Moreno, the company’s general manager for Latin America and the Caribbean, said Wyndham is expanding in Mexico because the country is a rising power in tourism and the sector is expected to continue to grow in the coming years.

With the eight new properties, the number of Wyndham hotels in Mexico will increase from 52 to 60.

The most-hyped upcoming opening is that of a Wyndham Grand Hotel in Mexico City.

Moreno said that Wyndham currently has only 41 of its premium-brand Grand hotels in the world.

The new addition to the Grand family will be located on Insurgentes avenue in a historical building in the trendy inner-city neighborhood of Condesa.

The Mexico City Wyndham Grand will become the company’s 11th brand with a presence in the country. Among the 10 others are La Quinta, Ramada, Wyndham Garden and Howard Johnson.

New Wyndham brand hotels are also slated to open in Piedras Negras, Irapuato, Aguascalientes, Puebla, Saltillo and Chihuahua.

Moreno said that Wyndham’s hotels in Mexico currently make up 25% of all hotels the company owns across the region.

The decision to cancel the new Mexico City International Airport project has not discouraged Wyndham from investing in Mexico, Moreno said, because the company is confident that lower prices compared to other destinations and a strong economy in the United States, the largest source country for visitors, will ensure that Mexico’s tourism sector remains strong.

Almost 40 million foreign visitors came to Mexico last year, making it the sixth most visited country in the world.

“That Mexico has reached that level of tourism is amazing,” Moreno said.

He hinted that Wyndham could seek to open more hotels and resorts in Mexico in the future in order to take advantage of opportunities in popular beach destinations.

“We’re in Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Mazatlán but there are great opportunities in destinations like Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta.”

Source: El Economista (sp)